Photo Management / Storage

[ToddF]

Originally Posted by Alex2614

We are currently looking into new ways to store and manage photos. We have tens of thousands of pictures, video clips, etc. and we would like a way to keep them all managed and easily accessible.

Good luck with this. This is a problem with which professional photographers struggle with continually.

My own system is based on organization by when photos are taken. I organize into folders with a date code and brief description of subject. For example:
140116 shop work
140118 catapult prototype
140127 shop work
140201 testing
140209 control panel
140215 shop work
140217 robot pics
140218 bag day

I use the windows subfolder system rather than a software solution for organization for a simple reason: I don't trust software companies. They go in and out of business, and make unwanted revisions to their software that they then require you to pay for. I want an organization system that will work 10 years from now.

This method allows the folders to self sort by date, because the year, month, and day are built into the folder name. You can make changes to the contents of the folders later (adding a cropped version of a photo, for instance) and the folders are still in order. For larger events, like a regional, I create subfolders named for each camera.

Originally Posted by Alex2614

We will be using Flikr after the season to help with the management, but I would also like a physical storage (I don't trust off-site cloud management. I want backups).

I avoid cloud storage for these reasons:
- Despite advances in broadband technology, cloud storage for RAW photos and HD video is SLOW. If it takes forever to upload and download the data, it never will get used.
- Free / inexpensive cloud storage kills the quality of your images by downsizing and compressing.
- I don't trust tech companies to be around 10 years from now.

Originally Posted by Alex2614

I also want a way to effectively collect photos from people after events. We have a problem with getting photos from people after our competitions and outreach events, even after pestering for weeks and weeks. We need some kind of policy or procedure to mitigate this problem.

Been there. There is only one thing that works. Get the photos while you are still at the event. Once you are home, that data is lost to you forever. We are often among the last to leave events because we stay and help tear down the field. While the students are working, I take my laptop and track down every parent with a camera and ask if I can download their photos. Or, if you don't get everyone, do the same thing when the team stops to eat afterward. If possible, also track down any students who brought personal cameras. You get a whole new perspective on the events when seen through parent's and student's cameras. Just remember, despite their best intentions and promises, once you get home, no one will ever give you their data.

Originally Posted by Alex2614

Bonus: I would like to tag photos to be searchable by subject, people in the picture, event, etc. So if I want to find a picture of inspiring children for a publication, I can find it more easily than sifting through pictures for hours.

Photo organization software for professional photographers offer these kinds of features, but that's going to put you at the long term mercy of a proprietary solution.

Originally Posted by Alex2614

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance for all of your help!

- It's not a question of if a hard drive will fail, but when. I have migrated my photo and video storage onto portable hard drives that I purchase in pairs. The working copies live on my desktop hard drive, but shortly after working with the data, it gets backed up to BOTH archive drives. Using USB 3 drives makes this process go relatively quickly.
- All SD cards and card readers are not created equal. Especially for HD video, purchase a fast SD card and card reader. This can cut file transfer times by 2/3 or more. My favorite SD card right now is this one paired with this reader. Having a fast card reader is especially important when downloading SD cards after events. I'm considering upgrading my laptop before our first competition just so I can get one with a USB 3 port on it. It makes that much of a difference.
- While having all those pictures and video is great, it does no good if those pictures and video never make it in front of an audience. Historically, as a team we have been very bad at turning captured content into viewable product. This frustrates me to no end. Why capture gigs and gigs of video footage and do nothing with it? <Beats head against wall.>